I'm in a massive pickle with passport and visa!!!

We are booked to travel on the 18th December.
I am currently living in the UK with and Indefinite Leave to Remain visa.
It is in my passport with my maiden name.
I have applied for British Citizenship and was told by the UK Passport office that I needed to change my Aus passport to my Married name BEFORE they will issue my UK citizenship and passport, otherwise i would have to have them both in my maiden name and would not be able to change it afterwards (why the hell, I don't know, as surely I could then have sent that passport in with a marriage cert and get a new one, but the lady said absolutely not) I also told her I was travelling, and she said to make sure to take my marriage certificate with me and that was fine.
So ages ago, i booked the appt in london to go down to get my new passport and the wait was 4 weeks- it just came back.
Anyway, while there as he was snipping my passport with the visa, he told me to check with the Home office in the UK as I am travelling at xmas!
I have been sitting on hold with the Home office for over 2 hours so far without an answer, but have been googling, only to find that if my name has changed , I must replace my visa with a biometric residence permit if my stay is over 6 mths.

So it seems I cannot just use my old passport with the visa at the border to get back in and show my marriage certificate.
It takes 6 MONTHS to get a new visa, or £839 for a fast track one which I cannot afford.
I will also have my British passport by then anyway so won't even need one!
It seems I am completely stuffed!
I am legally allowed to stay here and did nothing wrong and followed advice and now am in a complete pickle!
Adding to that my Dad is old and was just in Hospital with an 80% occlusion in his arteries, and not well at all, so if i cannot leave the country for the next 6 mths because of this, i am in trouble if he goes down hill!

I don't know what I can do?
Does anyone know what the deal is?

Why do you believe you cannot travel carrying both passports and your marriage cert??

Many have done this.

You have 3 months to apply for a brp which is irrelevant really if you have applied for citizenship.

Note also that ILR is not a "visa". It is a status and you don't lose that status simply because you changed your surname or it is stuck in an expired passport.

I was told by the Australian Passport officer to check with the home office (which i couldn't get onto today despite 2.5hrs on hold) as they might not allow me back in as my document was now in a new name.
So i googled and others said the same and the bottom paragraph of this page seems to say the because of a name change i must get a Biometric visa in my new passport instead.
https://www.gov.uk/transfer-visa

Oh, i forgot to add, that i called Border Control today and the lady there told me I would not be able to travel and to call Home office to double check, which i tried to do.

I said to the Border control person that it will take 6 mths for my citizenship to come through, (and since found out the same time frame for a biometric residence card) so did that mean i was stuck being unable to leave the country for 6 mths and she said," yes, unfortunately, it happens with some people in the middle of applications".

Also, my citizenship application is sitting online fully done, but couldn't be lodged until i got my passport back that I would need to lodge my application.

Many members travel in and out of the UK with both current and expired passports and ILR vignette and marriage cert to indicate name change and have never had a problem.

Note also that the call centre is outsourced to a third party who often give out incorrect information.

Really?
Where can i find out for sure then that i won't have a problem?
I was just reading through the final bit on the citizenship application and it states
"In most cases, you will have your supporting evidence (including your passport) returned to you immediately once the appointment is finished. You may not be able to use your passport for travel until you have received a decision on your application."

So lucky i haven't lodged that then either!
Why can't you use a valid passport in the 6 months you are waiting for your naturalisation?

flustered wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 27, 2018 6:49 pm

I was just reading through the final bit on the citizenship application and it states
"In most cases, you will have your supporting evidence (including your passport) returned to you immediately once the appointment is finished. You may not be able to use your passport for travel until you have received a decision on your application."

So lucky i haven't lodged that then either!

The above quote is relevant to visa/extensions applications and not citizenship. You are free to travel once you have submitted your application and supporting documents have been uploaded if you are using the new service. Mostly it refers to the fact that the visa a person would have had would be expired, therefore unable to return to the UK. This is not the case for citizenship applications.

It doesn't make that clear on the form though.
This form was flagged for me to read at the end of my application, called "https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ukvis-new-f ... ed-to-know" and it states it is about:

"Guidance

UKVI’s new front end services: what you need to know
From 2 November 2018, the way you make an application for settlement, citizenship or to stay in the UK for study or work will change for some applicants."

And later down the form it says under appt that you cannot leave the UK onece you have applied.
it's really very ambiguous if it really is the case that i can come and go as that is not how it reads.

You are not reading it properly. It clearly states what application types cannot leave the UK. Citizenship is NOT either of these.

If you are applying for leave to remain, or indefinite leave to remain, you should not leave the UK until you have received a decision on your application. If you travel outside the “Common Travel Area” (CTA) before the decision is made on your application, your application will be treated as withdrawn.

The CTA is:

UK
Republic of Ireland
Channel Islands
Isle of Man

If the decision is made while you are outside the UK and your current leave has expired you will not have a right to return to the UK and you may be refused entry at the UK border.

Ok , so basically i have been told misinformation by people and:

a) i have no problem going on my holiday with My current married name passport, PLUS my expired maiden name passport with IDL and a Marriage certificate.

b) I can submit my application for citizenship without causing any problems with travel.

So there was nothing to worry about at all?

Correct yes to all your questions.

As an addition, when you travel, take a print out of the payment confirmation and any downloadable letter (print two copies for example, one for biometrics one to keep) you get once you have submitted, to show the IO on return that you have applied for citizenship too if asked.

Thank you so much for your help everyone!
I really appreciate it.
It has made an awful , frustrating day alot better!

So I should submit the citizenship application asap (it's all ready to go) and print out 2 copies of the confirmation, and a copy of the payment slip to bring also?

Yes, better to be prepared when you travel.

Are you applying through the new UKVACS system?

I guess so, as the notice says that the other system ends on the 30th nov, where you go into the council and do it, and I am sure I won't get an appt before then.